Are there any Early Signs of Developing Diabetes?

If you have a family history of diabetes, then you may wonder what the early signs of diabetes are so that you can be alerted and visit your Doctor for further tests.

Here are four of the Early Signs of Diabetes:

1/ A Thirst that is Unquenchable

If you have a constant urge to drink water, but somehow your thirst never feels like it can be quenched, then this is often an early sign of diabetes.

This happens as a result of your body becoming less sensitive to insulin because increasing amounts of water are pulled from your blood in order for your body to cope.

2/ Fatigue and Weakness

This happens because the normal state of your body would involve glucose going first into your blood stream when you eat food, but then gradually transitioning into the cells in the body. The insulin then works to gradually bring down the levels of glucose in the cells, at the same time as the glucose is supplying us with energy.

When the link between the way that cells work and how they efficiently handle insulin is broken, then instead of the insulin going into cells, it stays in the blood. So you end up without enough in your cells, and in turn this can cause you to feel lethargic and fatigued.

3/ Tingling in the extremities

This is quite a common symptom with diabetes sufferers, and the technical term for it is neuropathy. It is not always one that is common in the early stages of the condition but increasingly shows up as diabetes progresses.

This is because having high levels of glucose in your system gradually leads to nerve damage. This very commonly manifests itself as numbness or unpleasant tingling in the feet, and rather worryingly, in some patients this can even lead in the end to amputation, with the American Diabetes Association estimating that:

“About 60% of non-traumatic lower-limb amputations among people aged 20 years or older occur in people with diagnosed diabetes.”

4/ Eye Problems

Some people experience eye problems when they have diabetes, such as blurry vision. This is known as Maculopathy, and can make it difficult to make out the fine details in people’s faces.

Another eye problem that some people exhibit with diabetes is where the blood vessels in the eye become blocked, and this causes problems. It is estimated that about 40% of type 1 diabetics and about 20% of type 2 diabetics suffer from this.

If you notice that you are constantly thirsty, have a tingling sensation in your hands or feet, or blurred vision, then those are clear early signs of diabetes, and you should immediately visit your Doctor for a check-up and a blood glucose test.

The good news is that diabetes is treatable with insulin and dietary interventions, and so the earlier you find out, the better off you will be.